Mutation The term 'Mutation' as it applies to the area of illness can be defined as ' Any alteration in a gene from its natural state. This change may be disease causing or a benign, normal variant. Specific mutations and evolution in influenza viruses cannot be predicted, making it difficult if not impossible to know if or when a virus such as H5N1 might acquire the properties needed to spread easily among humans'.

The term 'Mutation' as it applies to the area of hazardous materials can be defined as 'A change (damage) to the DNA, genes, or chromosomes of living organisms'.

The term 'Mutation' as it applies to the area of gnome research can be defined as 'Any heritable change in DNA sequence'.

About the author

Author: Mark McCracken is a corporate trainer and author living in Higashi Osaka, Japan. He is the author of thousands of online articles as well as the Business English textbook, "25 Business Skills in English".